The present invention relates to gauges for aligning opposite surfaces of a normally symmetric body in which a surface thereof has been subject to a collision as, for example, a collision between automotive vehicles or between a vehicle and an object.
A historic and chronic problem in the vehicle body repair business has been that of accurately and precisely restoring the damaged side of the vehicle to dimensions and coordinates that are precisely symmetrical to those of the undamaged side of the vehicle. This general method is known as reference dimensioning and, in this approach, it is necessary to assume that the undamaged portion of the vehicle constitutes a proper reference plane. This assumption is generally correct in those cases where the longitudinal axis of the vehicle has not been bent, and it is to this class of vehicle body repair problems that the present invention is directed.
In the use of prior art reference dimensioning methods, it was necessary to take actual measurements from the undamaged portion of the vehicle and, as well, to rely upon visual comparison of the measurements taken from opposite normally symmetrical surfaces of the vehicle body. This prior art method, while theoretically sound, has been found to be extremely tedious and time-consuming to execute properly in that dozens of reference points, in a typical repair situation, need to be compared in order to assure that the normally symmetrical opposite body surfaces are in fact symmetrical.
The prior art in the present field is exemplified by such patents as U.S. Pat. No. 3,786,572 to Larson and U.S. Pat. No. 4,302,882 to MacGregor. This prior art is more particularly applicable to the straightening of automobile frames and other structural members, as opposed to the alignment and restoration of damaged portions of the vehicle body.